Japan
Japan is an island nation located in East Asia. History Japan's history dates back to 2,000 BCE and was relatively unknown to Westerners until the 15th and 16th Centuries. The country became internationally known as a rising Asian power when it won wars against two large countries: China during the Sino-Japanese War in 1895 and Russia during the Russo-Japanese War in 1905. In 1910, the Empire of Japan occupied the Korean Peninsula. In 1937, it went to another war with China by invading Manchuria. In 1941, as World War II was happening in Europe, the Empire entered the tripartite alliance with Nazi Germany and the Italian Socialist Republic. By December of that year, Japan took the path of conquest. First, Japan launched a surprise attack on the U.S. Naval Base of Pearl Harbor in Hawaii which launched the United States into the war. Following Pearl Harbor, Japan annexed most American and European colonies and territories in the Asia-Pacific region. However, despite their surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, it would mark the Empire's downfall. The United States went on the offensive after the victory at Midway, and led the island hopping campaign which liberated islands from the Japanese. By May 1945, U.S forces captured Okinawa and braced for the invasion of the Home islands. Because an invasion would be too costly, the United States dropped two atomic bombs in the country: one in Hiroshima (August 6th) and one in Nagasaki (August 9). The same day, the Soviet Union declared war on Japan and invaded Manchuria and the northern part of the Korean Peninsula. They also occupied the Kuril and the Sakhalin Islands. Japan unconditionally surrendered on August 15th. On September 2nd, Japan formally surrenders to the Allied Powers in a signing ceremony on board the U.S.S. Missouri anchored in Tokyo Bay. During the Korean War, Japan was used as a Naval and Aerial station by the United States for sending troops to Korea. By the 1980s, Japan was already rising from its ashes as a result of World War II. The countries economy grew significantly from the decades the followed and was already on its path to become a new superpower next to the United States. World War III As World War III broke out, Japan was not part of the conflict. U.S. Forces. Japan were probably placed on high alert, just incase the Soviet Union would attack its bases on the island nation from the Kuril and Sakhalin islands. However, when majority of the U.S. Forces were sent to Europe and when the Soviets invaded Seattle, American soldiers were presumably pulled out for the need to reinforce Seattle. When China declared war against the United States and presumably the United Kingdom, NATO, and several Allied states; the fate of Japan remains unknown. What is known from the Asian theatre of the war is that South Korea, Taiwan, and India have fallen to the Chinese but this may indicate China has launched attacks on other Allied states. Japan may have been attacked due to its bloody history with China and its alliance with America. The Japan Self-Defense Force may have already been engaging the Chinese in the air and the sea, and is probably bracing for a possible Chinese invasion. Category:Countries